the goan I network
CANACONA
The 50-year-old government carpentry unit at Iddar-Loliem is set to undergo major renovation at an estimated cost of Rs 65 lakh.
Deputy Speaker and Canacona MLA Isidore Fernandes, who has been spearheading the revival of the project, conducted a joint inspection of the ailing unit in the presence of the Director of Crafts and Training Arvind Bugde, Assistant Director Rohan Kaskar, PWD Minister’s OSD Sarvanand Desai, Loliem-Polem Sarpanch Shailesh Pagui and the unit’s in-charge.
Speaking to reporters after the inspection, Fernandes said the unit would undergo major structural renovation at an estimated cost of Rs 65 lakh. “Only a financial approval is awaited from the government,” said Fernandes.
He also informed staff promotional matters should also be resolved by the department as many of the 13 employees at the unit are reportedly languishing in the same positions for decades.
During the meeting, the staff put forth their grievances and sought a fruitful solution to their careers.
“Besides employing carpenters, the unit is the only one which has major sawing equipment. This has benefited people for various wood designing work,” said Loliem-Polem Sarpanch Shailesh Pagui.
The unit had been set up during the tenure of Goa’s first chief minister Dayanand Bandodkar in 1967 after he had taken note of traditional skills of the carpentry community at Iddar-Tamnem in Loliem village.
Over time, this unit had not only helped generate employment to over 40 skilled and unskilled unemployed youth and workers, it had also been functioning as the production-cum-training centre for the entire Goa region.
This carpentry unit had been producing various types of furniture, besides carving and sawing of wood, turning the unit into one of the top profitable ventures of Goa government till the last decade.
Much of the government’s orders had also been allotted to the unit, enabling it to do much better business than the other units in North Goa.
Besides providing furniture such as wooden cupboards, tables, chairs, etc. to government departments, several schools used to place orders for benches and desks.
But these orders completely stopped over the years and the unit turned into a white elephant and instead of being profitable, began to depend on government coffers for a Rs 3 lakh monthly budget for staff salaries and maintenance of the unit. Shortage of materials was also cited as another reason for its downfall.
